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It’s time to break up with the chemical-filled coffee creamers! One of the more common questions I get from folks is what to substitute for their favorite coffee creamer once they go Paleo.

Luckily, with a few easy swaps, you can create your own deliciously flavorful dairy-free creamer. Customize it by adding a bit of natural sweetener if you prefer or leave it out for a sugar-free creamer. The choice is up to you! For a joint- and gut-soothing boost, add high-quality collagen.

To go with this Paleo Vanilla Hazelnut Creamer, I’m showing you how easy it is to make your own cold-brew coffee. Cold-brew is gaining in popularity because it’s less acidic and tends to have a smoother taste than other brew methods.

This ratio of beans to water is perfect for my palate, but you can always cut back to 3 cups of water if you like it stronger. Of course, you can use the creamer in any coffee or tea you’d like.

Place the hazelnuts in a glass jar or bowl—I like to use a quart-sized Mason jar—and add 2 cups (473 grams) cold water. Cover loosely, and let the jar sit at room temperature for 12 to 24 hours. When you're ready to make the creamer, pour off the soaking water.

In a high-speed blender, combine the soaked and drained hazelnuts and 2 cups (473 grams) fresh water. Blend on high for 30 to 60 seconds, or until the nuts are broken down. Strain the mixture through a nut milk bag or several layers of cheesecloth, squeezing out as much moisture as possible. Discard the pulp or save it to make hazelnut flour. Pour the hazelnut milk back into the blender.

On a cutting board, use a sharp knife to split the vanilla bean down the middle and gently scrape out the black seeds. Add the vanilla seeds to the blender. If desired, add the honey and / or collagen. Blend on medium-high for 15 to 30 seconds until everything is combined.

Pour into a storage jar and cover tightly. Keeps for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator.

Pour the coarse-ground coffee beans into a 1-liter French press. Add the water, and stir with a wooden spoon.

Refrigerate the French press for 12 to 24 hours. Add the plunger and carefully press it down until the ground are filtered out. If your beans were finely ground, you may want to filter the coffee through a coffee filter before drinking to remove any excess residue.

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Questions? Leave them in the comments below!

Gingerbread Spiced Bulletproof® Coffee is a warm, comforting cup of holiday flavor…sort of like eating a gingerbread man, but without the gluten bomb in your gut. You can make your coffee using your preferred method, and I’ve got a few ideas below for different ways to incorporate the gingerbread spice into your next cup. Curious about exactly what Bulletproof® coffee is and why it’s so good? Read my post here.

If you’re looking for DIY gift ideas for the holidays, make up a large batch of gingerbread spice mix, and put it in a fancy jar with a beautiful label (see more ideas for DIY spice mixes here). Even better would be to print out this recipe (or maybe the one for my Breakfast Sausage Scotch Eggs).

Gingerbread Spiced Bulletproof® Coffee Ingredients

Sprinkle the gingerbread spice mix into the coffee grounds. Brew the coffee using your preferred method (I use a French press but any preparation will do).

Pour hot coffee into a blender. Add the grass-fed butter and coconut oil, plus any extras like sweetener if preferred.

Blend for 30 seconds until frothy and creamy (use caution when using a blender with hot liquids). You could also use an immersion blender or just melt the butter and oil on top of your hot coffee, but I don’t prefer it that way…it ends up like an oil slick. If that’s your thing though, that’s okay

Since many of you are rocking along on your Whole30 (day 10 here!), you may be looking for alternatives to creamer in your morning coffee. I’m used to heavy cream in mine, and the thought of drinking black coffee makes me want to cry – no offense, black coffee lovers – so here’s my simple solution: coconut milk.

Be sure to stick to full-fat coconut milk in a can. Why? “Lite” coconut milk is just watered down full-fat, so you may as well buy the real deal, water it down yourself, and save some money. Coconut milk in a carton is usually highly processed and contains some not-so-fun chemicals. Recently, I found “coconut cream” at my local Sprouts and much to my delight, it’s just ultra-thick coconut milk. Win. Don’t like coconut? Make some extra-rich almond milk by following my recipe here and cutting the water back to 3 cups (or less).

I’m a huge fan of iced coffee but since coconut milk – with its high fat content – seizes up when added to coffee (science!), I blend my coffee hot and then refrigerate it.

Credit for this frothy delight goes to my dear friend Jen, co-owner of CrossFit Oregon City and creator of Jen’s Gone Paleo.

Full credit for this idea goes to one of my awesome readers, Krista from Kansas. On my Whole30 tip #4 about how to handle social drinking, she wrote, “I love Club Soda with lime, but I’ve also recently discovered that flavored Balsamic Vinegars mixed with sparkling water is the shizz.” I love this woman already, and this mocktail* is dedicated to her.

The concept is simple: sparkling water plus a splash (or a bit more) of flavor-infused balsamic vinegar plus ice and a fruit garnish. Tangy with a hint of sweetness! The flavored balsamics are generally not as harsh as what you’d pour over a salad and are infused with different layers of flavor. Read below for my combinations.

Prep time: 5 min Cook time: 0 min Makes: 1 serving

Ingredients for Easy Paleo Mocktails

4 large ice cubes

1 oz flavor-infused balsamic vinegar

4 oz sparkling water

Herbs or fruit to garnish

Directions for Easy Paleo Mocktails

In a 6 oz Glass

Place 4 ice cubes in the glass.

Pour the vinegar in the bottom of the glass.

Slowly pour the sparkling water on top. If you do this carefully enough, you’ll be able to create a vinegar layer at the bottom and the sparkling water in a layer above (because the vinegar’s more dense…SCIENCE). This makes the flavor more intense as you keep sipping. Or, just stir it all up!

Garnish with your choice of fresh fruit or herbs.

You can experiment with different amounts of vinegar. 4 parts sparkling water : 1 part vinegar was where my tastebuds were happy, but you may want more or less.

My flavor combinations were orange-vanilla white balsamic with fresh blackberries and a slice of orange for garnish and lemongrass-mint white balsamic with muddled mint and a garnish of lemongrass leaf (not edible). Krista also tells me that lemon balsamic with a bit of lemon olive oil floated on top is amazing.

The flavor-infused vinegars can be found online (the good people at The Tasteful Olive got me my order FAST) or at some gourmet food stores. Yes, they can be a bit pricey BUT think of these as special occasion drinks, and maybe the splurge is worth it. If not, you could play around with plain sparkling water and different fruits / garnishes or even freezing fruits and herbs like mint into ice cubes.

*I know we always talk about not trying to Paleo-ify bad food choices – like eating Paleo pancakes and cookies on your Whole30 and perhaps the same argument could be made against the mocktail. However. Many folks are reluctant to start a Whole30 because there’s a ___________ coming up this month (fill in the blank…birthday, anniversary, holiday, wedding…). Choosing something like this would give you a sparkling to hold and sip on and mingle with so you can feel like you’re part of the celebration with your fancy beverage.

I have a request: please don’t buy almond milk sold in cartons in the store. It’s often processed using chemicals and is usually filled with sugar, chemicals and preservatives. Gross.

Luckily, there’s a really simple way to make almond milk at home, and it comes out even tastier than what comes in the carton. You’ll need a few special things to make this happen: a powerful blender and some cheesecloth or a nut milk bag, but that’s about it.

I’ve made almond milk with soaked and unsoaked nuts, and both methods work as long as your blender is strong enough. Soaking the nuts, however, cuts down on the amount of phytic acid. In a nutshell—ha, no pun intended—phytic acid binds to minerals rendering them not useful to us. If you want to geek out on the science behind phytic acid, check out this post from Mark’s Daily Apple.

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Do you make your own homemade nut milk? What’s your favorite kind?

Making your own homemade kombucha is stupid-easy. Yusss! All you need is tea, sugar, a SCOBY and patience. Okay, so there are a few more details than that but overall, it’s pretty simple. I started buying kombucha before the great freak-out of 2010 – thanks a lot, Lindsay Lohan – during which the unquantified alcohol that could be in the drink caused it to be suddenly yanked off store shelves. Meanwhile, brewers of homemade kombucha were laughing.

[Want me to show you how to do it all from start to finish? Click here.]

All About Homemade Kombucha

I love fermented foods – I make my own sauerkraut and plan to start making kimchi – and it makes me feel kind of off the grid. Recently, I decided that I’d had enough of spending $4 for a bottle of GT’s. It was high time to get a SCOBY and start fermenting my own homemade kombucha. For those new to kombucha brewing, a SCOBY is a magical symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast which gobble up (ferment) the sugar, metabolizing it into the slightly carbonated, tangy drink that’s rich with probiotics and beneficial acids. In reality, it looks like a pale, weird, flat pancake and sort of like a science experiment. Click here to read more about kombucha health benefits.

I used a recipe for plain kombucha to start, then created my own flavor combinations for the second fermentation (to make more carbonation). I came up with ginger-mango and blueberry-raspberry…ummm, both came out freaking delicious! Since I’m all about stupid-easy stuff, I made a fruit puree (directions below) and froze it in ice cube trays so that I could add it exactly when my homemade kombucha was ready – which happened to be during the week when I was uber-busy. I ended up with *almost* four full 32 oz jars of homemade kombucha (one ginger-mango, two blueberry-raspberry and half a jar of plain). Why not four? You have to reserve at least a cup of homemade kombucha out of each batch to get the next started.

Overall, I was psyched at how easy this was to do at home, and I’m already planning to expand my little operation so I can double or triple my homemade kombucha production. Bottom line: you’ll have to experiment to see how long each step of process will take based on the conditions in your home and your own tastebuds. If the homemade kombucha is too sour, you can add more sugar and keep the fermentation going, but that just delays the process. For troubleshooting the process or to find a SCOBY, a quick search of The Google will give you a bevy of info. Watch here for my awesome tutorial on growing you own SCOBY.

Directions for Unflavored Homemade Kombucha Tea (KT)

Allow the tea to come to room temperature and pour into a clean one-gallon mason jar or crock.

Add 64 oz more water to the jar and place the SCOBY (along with any KT it came with) into the jar.

Cover with a piece of old t-shirt, and secure with a rubber band.

Allow the homemade kombucha to ferment in a dark place (mine was in the pantry) for 7-14 days. Mine was ready after 8, but I live in Southern California, and it’s been warm lately. The fermentation time will vary depending on your location, your SCOBY and how sweet or sour you want the homemade kombucha. Sample by moving the SCOBY aside and taking a little out with a clean spoon. After this time, your tea may be slightly carbonated and will be unflavored (only tea-flavored). You may drink the homemade kombucha tea then or to do a second fermentation with different fruits for flavor and more carbonation.

After your unflavored homemade kombucha is done fermenting, transfer it to a 32 oz mason jar. Add two cubes or 1/4 cup of ginger-mango puree. Close the lid and allow to ferment again from 1-3 days – again, it depends on your taste. You may want more or less ginger-mango puree or more or less carbonation. Mine took 2 days until I thought it was perfect. When it’s done, add your chia seeds and stir well so they don’t clump together.

Ingredients for Blueberry-Raspberry Homemade Kombucha Tea

In a small saucepan, heat the berries over medium heat until they have released their juices.

Lightly pureed them in the Vitamix or blender.

Spoon the mixture into an ice cube tray. Freeze until solid.

Two cubes will be ~1/4 cup of fruit puree.

After your unflavored homemade kombucha tea is done fermenting, transfer it to a 32 oz mason jar. Add two cubes or 1/4 cup of blueberry-raspberry puree. Close the lid and allow to ferment again from 1-3 days – again, it depends on your taste. You may want more or less blueberry-raspberry puree or more or less carbonation. Mine took 2 days until I thought it was perfect. You may want to strain the flavored kombucha to remove any seed reside. When it’s done, add your chia seeds and stir well so they don’t clump together.

Keep the extra cubes frozen for your next batch.

You can also order pre-made kits for making homemade kombucha, like these.

Have you ever made homemade kombucha before? If not, what questions do you have?

Just a quick suggestion of what to do with the last of your leftover coffee (if you ever have it!): I really love iced coffee so I make these coffee ice cubes to chill it down without watering it down. I used silicone molds because they’re easy to remove but you could use any type of ice cube tray.

Picture this: sitting on a balcony overlooking Dream Beach and the picturesque Pacific Ocean from the terrace of an amazing Balinese hotel. I can feel the breeze and see the waves crashing as we take a break from pedaling around the island of Nusa Lembongan on our bikes by sipping on delicious glasses of cold watermelon juice. Last summer I spent 2.5 weeks in Bali and the scene I just described really happen. Watermelon juice quickly became my drink of choice because it was so refreshing. When I got home, I knew I had to make it!

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I’m Steph…

...the creator of Stupid Easy Paleo. I'm a nutritionist and science nerd, and I love to lift heavy things up (and put them back down again). Let me show you how easy it is to eat real, nutritious food!